Rescuers: Stickers could be life-savers

GREENLAND — Before emergency crews can help residents in trouble, they need residents' help to find them.

Comment

By Karen Dandurant

seacoastonline.com

By Karen Dandurant

Posted May. 16, 2007 at 2:00 AM

By Karen Dandurant
Posted May. 16, 2007 at 2:00 AM

» Social News

GREENLAND — Before emergency crews can help residents in trouble, they need residents' help to find them.

Fire officials are asking the public to post their house numbers so emergency crews looking for an address do not waste precious minutes that could cost a life.

That's the message Fire Chief Ralph Cresta and the rest of the members of the Greenland Volunteer Fire Department want to spread.

In March, the Fire Department had a warrant article at Town Meeting asking for $10,000 to buy reflective house numbers to be attached on or near every mailbox in town. The article failed, but now the same message is being spread via the town Web site at www.greenland-nh.com/.

"We are just trying to make it easier, and this seems to work in other communities," said Cresta. "We often use street numbering on mailboxes to locate an address. Once in a great while, we have difficulty, but not often."

Reflective peel-and-stick street numbers can be purchased at local hardware stores.

Suggestions on the department's Web site include the following:

Post the street number on both sides of your mailbox or mailbox post in four-inch or larger reflective numbers. Make sure the numbers can be seen when the mailbox flag is down. If the mailbox and a home are on opposite sides of the street, consider adding a reflective arrow pointing toward the house.

For residents without a mailbox, consider installing a post at the end of the driveway with the street number on both sides in four-inch or larger reflective numbers. Street numbers should be four feet above the ground to avoid snow cover. Numbers on a house could be too far from the street to see.